


Confrontation

by rafamarkos5998



Series: Son of Shiva [6]
Category: Batman (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Hood: Lost Days
Genre: Bruce Wayne is a Bad Parent, But only a bit, Cassandra Cain and Jason Todd are Siblings, Cassandra Cain is Not Black Bat, Cassandra Cain is Orphan, Gen, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, It's sweet, Jason Todd is Ghost, Jason Todd is Not Red Hood, Jason gets some form of revenge, Jason points out why Cass is important to Shiva, Protective Talia al Ghul, Sandra Woosan is Jason Todd's Parent, Shiva and Jason fight, after the Joker attempts to provoke the Bats by going over Jason shooting himself in the head, also you'll need to wait for C+ parenting Bruce Wayne, and rise like them too, and why she's the only person he respects, at least i hope it is, but this is where he starts trying, it's not pretty, no beta we die like robins, often like Jason, she's going to fucking murder anyone who is a danger to her kids, she's trying, that's not the focus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-10
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:41:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27492868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rafamarkos5998/pseuds/rafamarkos5998
Summary: The Joker has caught the Bats, evidently eager for round two. Things don't go according to plan.
Relationships: Athanasia al Ghul & Jason Todd, Athanasia al Ghul & Talia al Ghul, Batfamily Members & Jason Todd, Batfamily Members & Joker (DCU), Cassandra Cain & Jason Todd, Dick Grayson & Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd & Bruce Wayne, Jason Todd & Sandra Woosan, Joker (DCU) & Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul & Jason Todd, Tim Drake & Jason Todd
Series: Son of Shiva [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1857853
Comments: 36
Kudos: 324





	1. Take Two

**Author's Note:**

> Characters meet up again, and important irreversible decisions are made. I hope this is a good payoff to all the setup done for this meetup.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Joker has caught the Bats, in what appears to be a repeat of the incident two years ago. But once again, Jason comes in with the save - however, this time, it's much less sacrificial.
> 
> But it seems Jason's here for something else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter feels cathartic enough to everyone who wants the Joker to get some comeuppance without going too far down that rabbit hole. I'm more interested in how Cass, Bruce and Talia evolve due to Jason's influence on them, so that's the focus.

Although Tim knows that he is stuck and would not be able to escape without help, he still struggles against the cuffs he is bound with. It is a matter of principle, after all.

They're all tightly bound, hands cuffed to metal chains of varying lengths hanging from the roof. It is, in Tim's expert scientific opinion, a shit way of capturing prisoners. Horribly inefficient and containing more points of failure, what with the chain and the cuffs and the common rail they are all hanging from.

Sadly, being shit doesn't prevent it from being effective.

He looks around the room, cataloguing all the people present.

Cass. Steph. Kate. Damian. Duke. Dick.

 _Bruce_.

They still have audio connections to Babs, but they have been rendered untraceable by some mysterious means. Their eyes and ears are blind and deaf when it comes to finding where they are.

Well, not exactly. Babs _does_ have a location on them, it just keeps changing every ten seconds, wildly shifting across oceans and mountains.

This is disturbingly similar to that one time when Jason had... shot himself. Yeah, shot himself. He can go with that.

He got better, so it couldn't have been that bad, right?

Tim knows it is a poor excuse for a coping mechanism, but the last few years have been hard. And the last few weeks, especially so.

Bruce had somehow managed to gather the spine to talk to them, even though it had been as Batman and was exclusively limited to discussing the case.

Which had probably been the best course of action. The screaming match between Dick and Bruce on the first day after the latter tried to ask about how his eldest was doing was still seared into Tim's memory.

Considering that the two of them can barely look at each other, it seems that being caught by criminals is not going to affect that weird (and frankly damaging) dynamic.

He hopes that this ends up going better than the last time with the Joker. He can use a break.

\---------------------------------

Tim privately decides that the universe is ruled by an asshole who enjoys tormenting him for no good reason apart from his own sick sense of entertainment. He is done hoping and wishing for good things.

_Fucking. Done._

Just when he had prayed for an easy resolution to their current dilemma, the Joker walked in.

The clown had been strutting like a pigeon, wheeling in a TV on a serving trolley. Weird.

He's calmed down a bit now, and has set up the TV with a... is that a DVD player?

"Who even uses DVD players anymore?" Tim curses himself internally. Of all the things he could have blurted out, that's what it had to be?

"You kids... Haven't you heard the saying about how old is gold?"

"That's a DVD player. I'm pretty sure there is an exception for that."

The Joker laughs. Tim feels sick inside.

"I have to say, you're funny. Maybe I should have tried to turn you. The bird before you doesn't have a sense of humour."

Tim decided to not dignify that with a reply.

"Okay, it seems like that was a fluke. You seem to not have a sense of humour either."

The clown was _pouting_. If it hadn't been utterly horrifying, Tim would have laughed.

"You're not exactly funny."

The Joker put his hands on his chin as if he was seriously considering the proposition. Then, he shook his head.

"Nope, I think I am. Shall I prove it to you?"

He turns the TV on, and Tim feels his stomach twist.

It's a video of the last incident, with Jason. As if that wasn't bad enough, the Joker decides that he needs to up the ante by providing a running commentary.

"I must admit, I did not expect you to allow a guy with superpowers into your city... I'm guessing you didn't know, did you Batsy?"

Bruce grinds his teeth together so harshly that Tim can almost feel the pain in his own jaw. It looks violently painful.

As video-Jason frees himself and looks around, the Joker proceeds.

"Well, I guess he was considering which one of you he could get away with killing. I must admit, I was expecting him to shoot you. Or your oldest bird here." A finger raises to point towards Nightwing.

"Shut up. He would never do that." Dick is pissed at Bruce, but he's still a Bat, after all.

The Joker's face twists into a comically contemplative position, before being replaced by the usual manic grin.

"No, I think he would. Your daddy here-" he saunters over to pat Bruce on the shoulder, "-slit his precious Robin's throat. I have to admit, I did not expect that from you, my man. You sure you're all right in the head?"

Dick grimaces and looks away. Considering that _all_ of their latest arguments have been based on Bruce's abhorrent treatment of Jason, that would be an unexpected development.

On the screen, Jason starts reciting his will.

It stings just as much as the first time.

The Joker's grin fades a bit, and Tim tenses.

"Eh, this is boring. Let's skip to the exciting bit."

He presses the fast-forward button on the remote in his hand, and the scene skips forward. When the Joker slows the video down again, Jason's pointing the gun at his forehead.

"I have the honour to be, your obedient soldier, J. Todd."

Tim closes his eyes. He doesn't want to see it.

He's a coward, he should at least be able to face the fact that his brother shot himself to save them, but he can't. Knowing that Jason came back didn't really make it easier to stomach.

"Bravo!"

The Joker claps too, for added emphasis. The fucking bastard.

"I need to know... What's that line from? I don't get it."

A voice comes from the shadows.

"Hamilton."

\---------------------------------

As everyone turns their heads to the side, to look at the source of the sound, they all hear the click of a lighter and see a small flame fight off the dark.

It travels up, to meet the end of a cigarette, that's stuck between a pair of somewhat dark lips.

The speaker steps out into the light, and Tim feels the blood in his veins freeze.

"Jason?"

Bruce's disbelieving voice speaks for all of them.

Jason looks... better. He looks like he's aged in reverse in the last two years. He's wearing a pretty elaborate suit, painted a dull black. Judging by the look, it is armoured, to the extent that none of their suits is - only the special armour that Bruce has stowed away comes even slightly close to being this well-kitted out. And even then, it doesn't seem to be limiting Jason's mobility in any way - he's moving as freely as he used to in his casual clothes when he stayed over at the manor.

God, that seems like a lifetime ago now.

He is wearing a helmet, but it has a strange design. Instead of being something like his previous red helmet, it is a unit that seems to be part of the rest of his armour, with the part covering his face splitting open like an old clamshell phone. There is no insignia on the chest, which thus looked oddly bare.

A part of Tim's brain notes how it is quite similar to Cass' new uniform. Even the colours are very close.

Jason's mocking tone brings Tim back to reality.

"I thought we were supposed to use code names in the field, B... Or is the Joker part of your family now?"

Bruce doesn't reply - although Tim is unsure if it is because of the shock of seeing his son again or because he merely doesn't have a reply for him.

For some reason, the Joker looks intrigued.

Oh no.

Tim swallows down the bile threatening to rise in his throat.

From what he can see, the others captured Bats share the sentiment.

"Why? Do you disapprove, Hood?"

"Well, he's out of your league. He might be 50, but he's Batman. You're competing with a pretty big crowd."

"Oh, but can you name anyone who is at my level of charm and wit and humour?"

"Firstly, your charm and with and humour are all way below sea level. Secondly, yes - your two buddies are right there with you at the bottom of the list."

"Aw... you're _mean_."

"And correct. Mind asking them to come out here for a chat?"

"Not at all. Come in, brothers!"

And with that... two more Jokers walk in.

\---------------------------------

Tim feels a bit faint at all the shit that has gone down in the past few minutes.

Jason came in to stop the Joker from... going through with whatever plan he had. Tim has no idea what it could have been, and for once, he doesn't want to know. He can live without solving that particular mystery, thank you very much.

Secondly, said Joker had revealed that he was... interested in Bruce. Tim had no idea how to process that information, so he buried it under the mountain of other 'things I don't want to touch with a twenty-foot pole', right along with 'is Bruce a top?' and 'what would giving Damian The Talk™ look like?'.

Also... there are three Jokers.

_There. Are. Three. Jokers._

Almost all of the other captured Bats looks just as shocked as Tim. Almost.

Bruce looks oddly calm.

_He knew._

Tim wants to punch him in the face. Without holding back.

It seems like Dick and Kate have caught on too, and are going through their own emotional rollercoaster of anger and horror and... more anger, really.

Cass looks like she's calming down, which is probably to be expected. She was probably done processing her negative emotions.

One of them is looking at Jason quite intently.

"You're the one who killed me, aren't you?" Jason asks.

"Guilty as charged." That particular Joker even does a little bow. _Bastard_.

Jason discards his current cigarette and pulls out a fresh one from a packet on his belt.

"Well, you have till the end of this cigarette to say whatever the fuck you want."

"To whom?" The third Joker enquires.

"Anyone. The world, each other, me, your captives back there." Jason, quite helpfully, also points towards them, and the Jokers turn to follow his line of sight. "After that, you're done for."

"And how do you plan to do that?"

Jason laughs harshly. The light in the room reflects off his armour, and it appears to have a slight red tint.

Knowing Jason, that was an intentional design choice.

"Wow, saving up a surprise, are we, my broken little bird?"

To Tim's surprise, Jason smiles at that. He doesn't dignify the statement with a response.

Jason swings his left foot behind and jerks it repeatedly in movements reminiscent of soccer players. A package flies over his head and lands at his feet.

The Jokers raise their eyebrows but do not say anything.

Jason kneels to reach for the brown box and pulls out a knife from... God knows where. Tim didn't catch him accessing a secret compartment in his suit. He's stealthier than ever before, Tim notes dimly.

After unpacking the item (which had been pretty well packed, all things considered), it is revealed to be a kit of emergency medical equipment. The packages are all in sets of three.

Tim realises that Jason had been preparing for this for a while.

"Wow, what is that?" The Joker that killed Jason has a lot of cheek.

"You'll find out soon enough."

Jason pulls the cigarette out of his mouth and lets it drop to the floor.

Tim braces himself and notices the others following his head.

The Jokers look excited.

The cigarette hits the floor, and Jason moves his foot to stamp on it.

"Goodbye, you fucking clowns."

As Jason's boot hits the ground, the clowns yelp and choke in surprise. (Tim's on the verge of doing the same.)

A multitude of shining swords are running through all three of them.

\---------------------------------

 _There's so much blood_ , Tim thinks. _Too much blood._

The Joker always felt more like a mythical monster than a mere human being. He was always able to get his plans past them and regularly came close to pulling off ridiculously dangerous operations every time they tangled with him. In fact, the number of times that one of his plans had outright failed could probably be counted on one hand. (Obviously, that did not involve using each finger as a binary bit.)

And there were apparently three of them. As if one wasn't bad enough.

But when Jason cut into them with his barrage of magical blades, they gasped like anybody else who had suddenly had their lungs punctured. The sound was wet and soft and weak - and those were not concepts Tim was prepared to associate with the Joker.

Even then, it seemed as though they still had enough breath to taunt them.

"Still too scared to kill in front of Daddy?"

"Hate to be cliche, but he's not my dad. Also, there's no point to killing you. The universe will twist itself to bring you back in about-" he cocks his head to the side "-five months. A year at most."

The Joker that killed Jason laughs. Jason seemingly takes it as an indication to proceed.

"No, I'm going to force Batman to work his ass off to keep you alive."

Suddenly, a clink is heard, and Bruce's hands fall free.

The rest of them stay bound.

"You might want to hurry, Bruce. They're dying. And you can't really take them to a hospital for a while."

Bruce looks like he would rather skewer himself with one of Jason's magic swords.

Tim knows he should probably be more shocked by the magic swords, but they're Bats, they've gotten used to shocks. Indeed, Bruce is visibly shaken, but that's probably because of Jason's words and sentiments.

Speaking of magical swords - Jason clicks his fingers, and the ones he had summoned to attack the Jokers disappeared. They all collapse to the floor, blood seeping out onto the yellowed concrete.

"Don't worry, it'll all be over soon. It's only a matter of time. And very little time at that."

And despite the reluctance visible on his face, Bruce moves, and starts bandaging the Jokers' wounds.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Bruce's voice is heavy with emotion, but Jason looks unmoved.

"Doing what to you?"

"Forcing me to help them."

Jason barks out a harsh laugh.

"Nobody is forcing you to do anything, Bruce. You can just leave them, you know."

"I will not leave a victim to die."

"Victim?" Jason's tone is mocking but lacks even the slightest hint of surprise. "He's the guy who kidnapped you all. He kidnapped us a few years ago, an incident I hope you remember because it ended with _me dying_."

"That does not-" Bruce stopped himself from proceeding with the sentence, but the damage had been done.

"Does not matter? It doesn't matter that this guy is a murderer with no hope of redemption, who keeps getting saved by you over and over and over again? It doesn't matter that he's tried to hurt a lot of people, including numerous members of your own family? It doesn't matter that he _killed_ me?"

Bruce's expression is inscrutable, at least to Tim. He supposed Jason and Cass have seen what they needed to.

"We are supposed to be better."

"No, Bruce, you want to try your best to be good so that you can feel better about yourself. And you might've sold the rest of them on that idea, but not me."

"You came here to kill him. How is he not the victim here?"

"Funny enough, I didn't come here to kill him. I actually had no idea who had taken you guys until I looked in through that window over there."

He points to the one window in the room, a pane of glass smaller than most of Tim's monitors and fit for a prison cell.

"I came here to make sure Cass was fine, and to make sure you all were present as witnesses."

"Witnesses for what?" Tim feels the urge to get more information and stand on the firmer intellectual ground, as the words push themselves out of his throat.

Jason smiles knowingly at him.

\---------------------------------

Tim doesn't get it at first.

But Cass apparently did, because out of the corner of his eye, he could see her focus in on one side of the room and snarl.

(He hadn't known that Cass could do that.)

Then, looking closer at the dark spot his sister was observing, he notices shapes. Indistinct, but absolutely present.

And clearly they knew that he knew - because within a second, he sees them move and come in closer.

When the observers step into the light, Tim feels confused.

It's Richard Dragon and Deathstroke. _What?_

"You're a dramatic bastard." Slade's amused, but not threatening. Why? As far as Tim is concerned, this makes no sense.

"Part of my charm." Jason's glib response does nothing to calm Tim's nerves.

Soon, another pair emerge from another dark corner - Talia al Ghul and Ra's al Ghul.

Bruce grimaces and grunts at them, focusing his efforts on tending to the Joker.

"I agree, Habibi. This was unnecessary." Talia's voice is warm like it had been a couple years ago when they saw the last of Jason.

"Unnecessarily theatrical, maybe. Not unnecessary."

Ra's al Ghul, ever the aristocratic asshole lording over the commoners, chose this moment to speak.

"I must warn you, boy, that I am expecting a show worth the time it took to get here."

"What's this about, Jason?" Bruce voices their confused thoughts for them.

"What I needed you to witness, Bruce. Enjoy the show."

At that precise moment, there is a crash in the dark, and a tall woman strides in.

It's Shiva.

She takes off her coat and tosses it, and a League assassin materialises out of nowhere to catch it. She cracks her neck and motions towards Jason.

"Shall we begin?"

\---------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really like writing Tim's perspective, because I feel I can get both enough perceptiveness as well as enough emotion in the line delivery. He's probably the side character I'm going to write the most (Talia and Cass count as main characters here) - although I'm probably going to write more stuff _about_ Bruce.


	2. The first time I talked to my mother (was the last)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fight begins. And ends.
> 
> It takes a surprisingly short amount of time. To most, it's a surprisingly short and disappointing thing.
> 
> For Cass, it's a tragedy in slow motion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is part of my attempt to make Jason the driving force of the story and give Cass the most dramatic arc. I hope it's working.

Cass tries (and fails) to look away as Jason begins to remove his suit.

It is an impressive piece of armour, covering his entire body and making him unrecognisable. With the helmet closed, it would protect his identity better than the Batman uniform protects Bruce's.

As he removes piece after piece, Cass notices that he's wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt.

She's never seen him wear short sleeves before.

His muscles are better defined than before, and he looks much healthier. There is no fresh assortment of recently-stitched wounds on his skin, as well as the wounds he would regularly fail to take care of.

There are scars on the inside of his forearms. Long lines going from his wrist to his elbow.

It feels... unreal. She'd heard about it from Stephanie, and then again from Barbara, but that had been a while ago. She had been angry at Bruce, angry at everyone, and it had all fallen into the box of things she decided to not think of because they hurt too much. Now, looking at the scars that have been there for four years and will probably remain for the rest of his life, she wonders how she failed to see it.

Or maybe it was because she had learned to view his disregard for himself as the norm. Bad habits were easy to form and hard to get rid of.

Even now, part of her tells that her brother is back and the same as before, even though she knows that being the same as before is not exactly a good thing.

She looks at her mother, whose eyes slowly move around the room as Jason prepares for the fight.

The brown eyes land on her, and a wave of dread runs through her body.

_One of them is going to die._

Shiva will kill if need be. (At this point, everyone believes that Jason will probably come back. Yes, Cass is bothered by how nobody really knows that for sure, but she ignores the thought. She doesn't want to consider the very idea of her little brother not coming back.)

Jason will kill if he has to. And this time, it isn't about morals.

Everyone knows that Shiva, in her quest to be the best fighter, is going to die before her time. No matter how good she gets, she will keep growing old. And eventually, someone will come along who is better than her. She cannot make her title mean any more than it already does.

The best she can hope for is to die in her prime, to a fighter whose legend propels hers.

Cass knows that Sandra Woosan has been subjected to a cruel fate. One where she needs to become hard and cruel to make her sister's death mean _something_. To make her own surrender to David Cain mean something.

She doesn't want to have anything to do with it.

It disgusts her to be related to something like that, and even though she feels her heart overflow with compassion when she considers her mother's circumstances, Cass cannot help her get what she wants.

The time for justice is long gone. David Cain is no longer a threat to anyone, and Shiva is long past the point of redemption.

Jason knows this too. She can feel it, in how he moves. The respect in his slightly bowed head, the different kind of sadness that now flows through all his movements as he lays the last bits of his gear to the side.

He puts his shin guards next to the calf guards and moves to the centre of the room.

The two combatants face each other, standing six feet apart, sizing each other up.

And without a word from anyone, the fight begins.

\---------------------------------

Cass is familiar with fights that are conducted for showing supremacy or proving one's skill. She has participated in many of them over the past two years. She is ashamed of the number of times she has gotten into a ring for the first reason.

Usually, in fights like those, there is someone present who would mark the beginning and the end. Someone to proclaim a victor, and to prevent said victor from severely injuring the loser.

However, there are other occasions, when fights are fought purely between the combatants. No referee, no rules, no complicated conditions for victory.

Just one's body and the drive to escape death.

Her fights with Shiva had always been like that. There was no horn to tell them to run at each other, nobody to tell them to stop. They would fight, and fight, and fight some more until one of them fell and never got back up.

She watches Jason and Shiva go at each other, in something that looked like a ridiculously horrifying parody of dance.

Jason would block hit after hit, and turn them into counterattack opportunities. Shiva would jump out of range. She would jump back in, with a less predictable attack. Jason would still predict and dodge it, and the cycle would continue.

They would shift from style to style, testing each other. Always prodding, looking for a weakness.

Jason tries to land the most potent hit that he could reasonably conceal. Shiva sees it coming a mile away and sidesteps it, the punch flying down her left. Jason's right foot hooks back around, and he flips to land a powerful kick on her upper arm with his left leg.

Shiva lets the hit land, and Cass hears the sickening crack that indicated a broken bone. She smiles, and brings her left arm around to grab his leg, and moves her right foot in a sweep to unbalance Jason. It works, and Jason is, for a second, flying helplessly in the air.

Shiva uses all of her strength to pull him down to the earth in a powerful slam.

Jason lands with a sickening crash and is slow to begin moving again. Shiva puts her right foot on his right arm and aims with her other foot towards his neck.

As the kick comes down, Jason twists at the last second, softening the blow. He also summons the strength to roll out of Shiva's hold and get back up.

When he does, his neck looks like it's under considerable strain. He isn't moving it freely, and Cass can see the tension in the muscles.

That said, Shiva is now down an arm, so that trade has probably benefited Jason.

They fall back into the same dance as before, except that this time, it is clear that Jason is moving much faster and with more control than Shiva.

It's only a matter of time, now.

Soon, there is another fast flurry of vicious blows being traded back and forth. Jason takes advantage of an opportunistic kick from Shiva to trap her right leg with his right foot, and pushes her back with a strong punch to the chest. As she tips a bit backward to roll with the punch, Jason aims a devastating kick at her right leg - a hit he can make safely now that her right arm is out of the picture.

Once again, the horrible sound of shattering bone is heard, and Cass wants to close her eyes and push it away. But she can't.

This is her mother and her brother engaged in a fight to the death. The least she has to do is watch and remember.

Still, even with a broken arm and a limp, Shiva is still dangerous, and Jason keeps his guard up. Cass notices that he's getting tired now.

He charges in to trade punches and aims a kick at her broken leg.

Shiva buckles in pain and Jason aims a sharp, fast punch right at her nose.

Knocked back by the surprise hit, Shiva is too distracted to notice her son aiming for her left collarbone. She moves back to buy time to avoid the hit, but she's not in a position to be able to do so.

Her collarbone crunches with a sound that Cass will never be able to forget.

It's over.

\---------------------------------

As Shiva goes down on her knees, Jason sits down in the same position to be level with her.

Looking her in the eye, he raises his right arm, his fingers coming to rest on the left side of Shiva's neck.

Shiva smiles, and Cass notices that her teeth are covered with blood.

"Where did you learn that?" Shiva's voice is tight with the strain of keeping her pain under control, but Cass can hear the mixture of joy and sadness in there.

Jason smiles in return before replying.

"Funny enough, I read about it in a book."

Shiva laughs, and despite her injuries, it booms through the large warehouse-like space they are in, filling up every inch.

"I am proud of you, my son."

"I'm not the one you should be proud of. It's her."

"She came nowhere close to fulfilling her destiny."

"And despite that, she is everything she needs to be and more."

Shiva's face changes as she thinks about what Jason said. It was... contemplative, yes, that was the word.

"She doesn't need to be your successor for Carolyn's legacy to live on. And I think both of us can agree that she is better than what either of us could hope to be."

Shiva turns to her, and for the first time, Cass sees peace and calm in her face. She hates the reason behind it.

She turns away, unable to face her gaze. Out of the corner of her eye, she notices her mother's expression fall.

The nearly-dead woman turns back to face her son and closes her eyes.

With a slight nod, Jason twists his fingers.

It is quick, just like it had been for Cass all those years ago. And yet, this time, she doesn't know what to feel about it.

\---------------------------------

Jason cradles his birth mother's body for a while, before slowly setting it down.

He plants a kiss on her head and closes her eyes. Cass can see the grief rolling off of him, the pain of wondering about what he has missed thanks to what he has done here.

Cass knows that she would never have come close to doing what Jason has done here, but she can't help but feel happy that Sandra Woosan is now at peace.

She doesn't know what to do with that feeling.

Jason stands back up, tall and proud. He nods towards Slade Wilson and Richard Dragon, who both smile back.

He turns to the al Ghuls. His mother, Talia, is standing there, her face showing a mixture of worry and pride and fear.

Ra's al Ghul's face displays no such thing. There is a complicated mixture of surprise and fear, excitement and curiosity. A combination that he expresses with what he says next.

"Interesting."

Jason is unimpressed by Ra's attempt to show his power.

"Really? I'm pretty sure the Demon's Head has something more substantial to say here."

The old man laughs, but Cass cannot see any humour in it.

"I must say, I am surprised. How did you let the Detective win when you tangled with him upon your return to this city?"

"Yeah, that's a whole can of worms I don't want to open. Also, if you haven't noticed already, this wasn't about skill."

"Then pray, do tell me, what was it about?"

"Endurance. It was about which one of us could fight for long enough to outlast the other person. And in the grand scheme of things, this was about who has a better chance of carrying the title for long and defending it. Even though it is a worthless name that needs to die out."

"And why do you want your own mother's legacy to die out?"

"First things first - she's not my mother. She just gave part of my DNA. Second - the legacy is a horrible misappropriation of the religions and traditions of another region. Third - it's just an endless war with no victory - just the opportunity to fight another day until you don't, and then the cycle continues with the next unfortunate idiot."

"Then why kill her?"

"She deserves peace."

"Ah, the ever elusive 'peace'."

"That's why people look for it."

"And how do you plan on finding it, given your condition?"

Jason smiles sadly, and it cuts through to Cass' heart.

"I don't."

\---------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is where we begin the second phase of this story. I don't want to completely demonize Bruce - as appealing as that feels from a writing perspective, I want to be able to do better than that, and I hope I can get there.


	3. What's in a name?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ra's tries to anoint Jason as the second Shiva, but... it doesn't go as planned. It's pretty important, but also not important at all.
> 
> Jason deals with the idea of having killed his mother while being consoled by his mother.
> 
> Meanwhile, Bruce's hands are tied (or at least occupied). His brain is not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was part of the initial plans for this story but got split in two because it felt like this part did not mesh well with the rest. The second half will undergo serious revisions to make it somewhat coherent on its own.

Bruce does not like how this is going.

Jason has put him in a bad spot here. He's stuck trying to keep a trio of Jokers alive, while Jason killed someone. Yet again, he's been rendered helpless while someone dies in front of him.

He hates himself for letting the surge of relief course through him. This will ensure that Cass remains safe, but at what cost?

Not one that they should have had to pay, but here he is.

Shiva lies on the ground. Another dead mother.

She will never see her children grow old.

He knows that's not what he should feel. Shiva was a monster - she had terrorized Cass for years, a lingering shadow that was slated to chase her for years, maybe decades. Unlike Cain, Shiva remained a threat in the present, able to come in and overturn his beloved daughter's life with barely a moment's notice.

He supposes that there is some consolation in the fact that it's fallen to Jason to do the deed. Jason has made his peace with killing a long time back, it's better for it to be his fault.

He hates himself for thinking that way about his son.

(Yes, that is _his_ son, no matter what he or Talia think.)

And now Ra's al Ghul is parroting some stupid nonsense about how Jason was good at killing people and a surprise.

_Fool._

Bruce doesn't need to know Jason's family tree to know that his boy is talented, determined, and capable of doing whatever he wants.

He checks back into the conversation when Jason talks about finding peace.

Given what he has learned about his son, that is a worrying idea. Jason is too young to die yet again, let alone at his own hand.

(He filters out all the other troubling ideas that come with thinking about what Tim had dug out not so long ago.)

"Fortunately, young man, you have a legacy to live for now." Sadly, Ra's is as slimy as ever. "You are indeed worthy of Shiva's name."

"I have no interest in her name." _Thank God for that, Jason. There is still hope for you._

"And yet you fought her, and won."

"I fought her because I thought I had a chance to stop her."

"And thereby proved that you are a better fighter."

"A single fight tells nothing about who is a more skilled fighter - that's an average drawn across a career."

"And you have had an illustrious career so far, haven't you? The last warrior of the All-Caste, the bearer of the All-Blades, the hero who vanquished the Untitled. The man who tangled with the Bats and escaped the long arm of their justice. The Outlaw who has saved countless lives the world over."

"Your point?"

"You have ruffled a lot of feathers in your short time on this stage, young man. Shiva's name will fit well on you."

"I'm. Not. Interested."

"Interest has nothing to do with it, Jason Todd. Her name has power - a power that cannot be denied."

"My own name is pretty powerful, you know. 'Ghost' does have a mysterious and threatening vibe to it, does it not?"

"And Shiva invokes creation and destruction. A much more compelling image, I'd wager."

"If I wanted to engage in cultural appropriation of that variety, I'd rather call myself Krishna."

Ra's raises an eyebrow. "That is... ambitious."

"Why?"

"It would be, to presume to be the destroyer of worlds."

"Yeah, that's not the point behind the name."

"Then what is, pray tell?"

"She's my mother-" Jason points at Shiva's corpse "-but not really. He's my dad-" Bruce's heart swells to twice its size "-but not really. She's not supposed to be my real mother-" he points towards Talia "-but she is."

"I must admit, that is a compelling argument. Notably, Krishna does get to be royalty with the chosen name."

Ra's points to Talia.

"She is my daughter and carries my name. That is why people look to her when they speak of the Daughter of the Demon."

Bruce expects violence to break out at that point - Jason is surprisingly defensive of Talia at the best of times.

Instead, he _laughs_.

Ra's raises an eyebrow.

Jason calms down after a while, giggles still lining his face. The laughter feels genuine, if slightly malicious, and it does nothing to calm Bruce's nerves.

"Funny you had to say that."

"And why?"

On cue, Ra's chokes on a gasp of surprise, as a red blade pierces his throat.

\---------------------------------

Talia watches her father attempting to breathe past the metal obstructing his trachea, as Nyssa steps out of the shadows and plunges the blade further in and pushes the old man further into the light.

Here, on the verge of death, Ra's al Ghul looks... normal.

She had expected... more. He was the Demon's Head, his death shouldn't feel this... ordinary.

Bruce looks... shaken. She can see him attempting to wall off his emotions, unable to interfere in any meaningful way.

Jason turns to look at his father, shakes his head.

"Not your fault, Bruce."

Bruce grits his teeth, and Talia remembers just how frustratingly obstinate the man can be.

"Not. Your. Fault."

Even when their relationship has been all but severed, Jason is still looking out for Bruce.

"You were right about him being exceedingly egotistical." Nyssa's tone is filled with the quiet amusement that she has come to enjoy.

Jason turns to her sister, his expression grim. "Not the time."

"On the contrary - it is the right time. Ra's was humouring him for a while, trying to get him on board with his plans, but I shall harbour no such delusions. Your father is weak."

"One - he's not my father. Two - he's not weak. He's often conceited, controlling, selfish and downright delusional, but he's not weak."

"You seem absurdly eager to jump to his defence."

"He's not at fault here. He just happened to be a convenient tool to play your game."

"You're a player too, Ghost."

"Only because I happen to have lucked out in finding an ability that lets me matter a lot more than I would have otherwise."

"No, your luck lay in being Talia's son."

"...Well, I'm not going to argue with that."

Talia notices Bruce bristle at the suggestion, and she feels a petty sort of satisfaction at having taken one of Bruce's sons from him.

It is sweetened further by the fact that Jason has been a better son than she could have ever asked for, and certainly far more than she deserved.

But still, seeing Bruce's face contort feels oddly satisfying.

Jason huffs impatiently, clearly eager to leave.

Talia decides to push ahead with the rest of their coup.

"Sister. We should proceed."

Nyssa turns to her. "Yes, I suppose we should."

At a sign, a couple of their attendants bring forward a few jerry cans of petrol, and pour it over the corpse of Ra's al Ghul. Jason tosses a matchbox to Nyssa, and she pulls out a match and lights it.

She lets it drop on the father's corpse, the flames dancing in her cold stare.

Talia wonders what her sister is thinking about. Is it about the myth of Ra's al Ghul that her mother had sold to her? Or is it her family, who had been lost thanks to Ra's refusal to assist them in their hour of need? Or is it about what lies ahead, now that the League is in her hands?

Maybe one day, they can be close enough for her to know.

Talia wonders if she would have eventually lost faith in her father in the same way Nyssa did, and what price she would have paid to get there. She knows that she would not have been as strong as Nyssa, going on after losing the people she loved.

She is thankful that for her, the worst never came to pass.

As Ra's burns, Jason turns to Slade and Dragon.

"That's the end of the show, guys."

Dragon is as gracious as always in his replies.

"As tragic as it was, I must commend the quality of the production."

Slade is more... crass.

"Must say, kid, I didn't expect that out of you. You might turn out better than Grayson did."

Jason, to her surprise, laughs.

"I guess that shit's never going to end, is it?"

"No, I presume not."

"Well, you guys have seen what you needed to, so scram already."

"What, no hospitality for the guests?"

Jason points at the captured Bats. "We're keeping those guys bound up."

"Point taken. Let's go, Dragon."

Dragon nods and the two of them disappear into the shadows.

 _Dramatic bastards_ , Talia thinks to herself.

Jason turns to the Bats. "Once we're out, I'll let Babs know where you are so she can send someone to get you."

Dick Grayson looks livid. "You can't expect us to condone this, Jason."

"Bruce is sitting there, trying to keep a trio of monsters alive. He could have gone for us. Considering that Slade was fully armed, it wouldn't have gone well for him, but he still could have tried."

"That's not fair and you know it."

"Yeah, that's the point. Neither is it fair of you to complain. Also, I'm fucking _done_ with this argument."

He turns around, and she notices him trying to conceal the strain in his neck.

_Foolish boy. You don't need to put on a brave face all the time._

"Let's go, Talia."

She nods.

He bends down and picks up his mother's body. He glances towards his sister - Shiva's other daughter, the one trained by Cain to be the best fighter there ever was, _The One Who is All_ \- but only for a short while. Then he turns back, to leave.

Nyssa snaps her fingers and points to the charred remains of Ra's, and her attendants step forward to collect them for proper disposal.

Talia follows her son, as he walks away from those who had once been his family.

\---------------------------------

Talia watches as her son sits beside her on her side of the limousine, sinking into the soft leather with a sigh.

Shiva's body is laid before her on the floor of the car, lips curled in a small smile.

She presses a button on the large rear console below her right arm, which lifts the seat before her and reveals a large kit of emergency medical equipment fit for an ambulance.

She pulls out a neck brace and turns to face Jason, avoiding the body. It is Jason's mother after all.

She puts the neck brace on her son's neck, as he looks down mournfully at his mother.

She can feel the tension in her son's muscles, which doesn't let up even after she massages them a bit.

Jason is the first one to break the silence.

"This was the first time I talked to her, you know."

She feels him swallow before he proceeds.

"The first time I talked to her was when I was killing her. How fucked up is that?"

"She did not leave you much choice."

"I know... I wish it could have gone differently."

His fingers curl in, and he burrows his head into her shoulder.

"It's not fair."

Talia hugs him, holds him close, as the tears come.

"It's not fair. It's not fair."

"I'm sorry. It's going to be okay."

Jason only sobs harder in response.

"He could have stopped me. Why didn't he? He should have stopped me."

_No. I will not let you blame yourself for this._

She pulls away a bit to face him head-on.

"Bruce's choices are not on you. Neither are Shiva's. Only your own."

Jason laughs weakly. "Not that reassuring, T. That means I'm responsible for my mother's death."

"It does. And it also means that you are only responsible for killing her, and not for being put into the position you were in. Shiva was out for blood, and if you had not fought as hard as you did, you would have died."

Jason scoffs. "That's not much of a concern for me, is it?"

"You don't know if you will keep coming back."

"It does mean I could have stopped her differently."

"You give yourself too much credit there. Shiva is too capable for you to capture her alone. You know that she would have torn herself apart just like you to win - the sole difference being that she cannot come back."

Jason falls silent.

Talia watches as his lip quivers, as he tries to gather his thoughts.

"He tried to take my name."

"He did."

"I guess I'm doomed to be the second of everything."

"No, you are not."

Jason remains silent.

"He does not get to say who you shall be. You chose your name, and I will make sure you will keep it."

"But he said-"

"What he said hardly matters. He is dead, and his remains are charred beyond recognition, let alone repair. Nyssa is the Demon's Head now, and I am certain that she will allow you to call yourself whatever you want."

Jason does not respond.

"Habibi."

"It's not fair." He mumbles.

She sighs. "No, it isn't."

She hugs him again, as the sobs come rushing back.

She holds her child as close as she can, as he suffers through the unimaginable pain of losing a parent to his own hand.

\---------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have wanted to write this idea of Jason being the recipient of a bunch of names and unfavourable comparisons through no fault of his own. He's the second Robin, the second Red Hood, and over here, the second child of Shiva and the second Shiva. He's also Talia's second son, though I imagine he's fine with that aspect here.
> 
> I wanted to deal with that idea, of being given an identity instead of being able to make one. The Krishna stuff is the first bit of actual dialogue I wrote for this series since I thought it would be a cool thing to use in a Jason Todd story with this form.
> 
> As always, all responses are appreciated, no matter the type. If you spent your time reading this, I'd love to know what you think, irrespective of how unfavourable it is.


	4. What can I do for you?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Talia is not willing to leave things as they stand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to note here that I'm ignoring the entirety of the Heretic/Leviathan fiasco with Talia because it does not mesh with the character I want to write. I'd like to apologize if I'm breaking any headcanons you're bringing to the story, and hope that the material is appealing enough to compensate.

Dick sinks into the chair, letting his guard drop a bit as the beeping continues to wash over his senses.

He has backup now, he can relax a bit.

He doesn't like the fact that said backup is there to protect the Joker. He isn't a fan of assigning six Bats to protect three Jokers. He would prefer to have no Bats protecting any Joker. He would rather leave it to Arkham and have Babs monitor the feed with whatever new remote surveillance AI she comes up with along with Tim.

But that isn't an option if they wanted the Jokers to live.

And thus there are six Bats stuck in a somewhat stuffy room at 3 AM, trying to keep the three recuperating Jokers alive.

Dick is sitting near the door, with his body shielding the Joker who lies closest to the entrance. (Dick decides to refer to that one as the door Joker.) Tim is on the chair to his right, between the middle Joker and the door Joker. On the other side, Kate is leaning on the wall facing the door Joker, twirling a Batarang. Further to the right, Duke is seated between the middle Joker and the window Joker, with his helmet half-open like a welding mask. Damian is in the far corner on Dick's right, standing ramrod straight and observing every inch of the room. Bruce is sitting next to the window, next to window Joker.

In Dick's humble opinion, there were too many Jokers here.

He tries to adopt an even breathing pattern, to prevent himself from getting carried away by his thoughts.

Jason... he's back.

Logically, Dick knows that it would have been but a matter of time before they crossed paths with Jason again. That was just the way the life works, it pushes people of significance towards each other, especially during times of upheaval.

And a coup within the League does qualify as a major upheaval.

And on top of that, Jason is now the guy who beat Shiva. Which, according to Ra's, should make him the new Shiva, but Jason was more inclined to use the name Ghost.

He doesn't want to work out what that name was supposed to mean.

Jason had taken the mantle of Robin to assist Bruce, to make Dick's tool for holding onto the memory of his parents into a symbol of hope for victims of an unjust world that he understood a bit too well. And when he had returned from the grave, filled with hatred for those that had loved and mourned him, he had taken the Joker's old name, to mock both his father and his murderer in the same breath - while making it into a symbol of its own.

But Ghost... Dick doesn't know of any vigilantes with that name. Who is Jason invoking there?

Whatever it is, it's beyond Dick right now. Future Dick can ponder that question when he has time for it.

Right now, present Dick needs to focus on keeping the Joker alive.

Which is... not good, as previously stated. Considering that this is the first time the Bats are publicly protecting a criminal in this fashion, it doesn't send a good message to the people who look to them for security.

After all, if the Joker is the one they are putting so much effort into keeping alive, any reasonable person will begin to question where their sympathies lie.

Truth be told, Dick has no idea where his sympathies lie.

He doesn't want to leave anybody to die. He _doesn't_. It makes him feel... weak, not being able to keep them alive and happy.

He knows Bruce feels the same way.

But does the Joker deserve that generosity?

Dick hates the idea of passing moral judgement on people. He knows he doesn't have it in him to judge everyone accurately, to know what punishment they deserve for the crimes they have committed.

He's never used his gun while on the force, for that same reason. He has no right to be the arbiter of who lives and dies, and he has the skills to do his job without actually resorting to it.

But he knows of many who have taken that call, and saved lives through their actions. He has worked with them, trusted them with his life, and once or twice, their call to pull the trigger on someone has saved his life and countless others.

He doesn't want to know what that says about him.

Before his thoughts can spiral further, he hears a tinkling sound and raises his head just in time for the burst of red.

\---------------------------------

As Talia pulls the trigger on the large sniper rifle, there is but one thought in her mind.

_I will not fail you._

In her desire to stay on Bruce's good side, she has let her son down for far too long.

Not anymore.

She takes a deep breath, and lines up the shot.

One bullet. Three heads.

This is their best chance. She will take it.

She exhales and stills herself. The world becomes a blur, as she focuses in on her target through the scope.

She squeezes the trigger.

A second passes, and she lifts her finger.

Another second passes, and the bullet breaks through the window.

A third second passes, and her targets are dead.

Talia ignores the commotion in the room as she packs up her gear and prepares to leave.

_My son is free now._

She has been unsure about many of the decisions she has made over the years, but this is one that she knows she will repeat every time.

Her chest swells with pride.

She runs across the rooftops, scarcely bothering to hide.

She has kept her son safe from harm. Why should she try to hide?

She knows the exact moment when Bruce gets up to a vantage point and sees her silhouette on the roofs of Gotham - she can tell by the prickle in her neck as her instincts tell her that she is about to be hunted.

She also knows the exact moment when all the Bats chasing her manage to get onto her trail - she notices them adopting a strange movement pattern, probably in an attempt to surprise her and take her in.

(Both times, she has also benefited immensely from the assistance of Roy Harper and his technical expertise. It is behind the gun she had just used and the bullet she had just shot, and more importantly, the hardware-encrypted communication system she is using.)

Normally, this is the moment when she would let the Bats try to capture her, leading them on a chase across the city's skyline before ending it with an unsatisfying, enigmatic conversation where nothing is communicated and every important part is left unsaid.

Today, she shifts course such that she can lose them more quickly.

She has a family to get back to.

Grimacing, she jumps across an extremely large gap and instinctively prepares for a harsh greeting from either a Bat or a concrete wall.

(There's a 'same difference' joke in there somewhere, one that would have Jason in stitches.)

She smiles as a transport helicopter comes down two buildings ahead, and she urges herself to speed up.

She jumps and reaches out to grab the ledge of the next building, pulling herself up smoothly and rolling onto the roof.

She runs across the roof jumps onto the final building, as a rope ladder drops down from the side of the helicopter.

The Bats are closing in, but they are not nearly fast enough.

She jumps and grabs onto the ladder, as it begins to retract and the helicopter begins to move up and away.

She watches as the Bats close in, hands instinctively reaching for their grapples. She removes a pack of throwing stars from her belt and holds them up - the threat is obvious.

Another pair of helicopters approach their position, but these are not for transporting people. Hopefully, this will encourage Bruce to not bring out the Batplane.

She turns away from the door. She doesn't want to think about them any longer than necessary.

\---------------------------------

Dick lands on the roof with a resounding _thump_ , which is quite unusual for him.

Bruce, Tim and Damian land next to him, a bit more gracefully.

_I'm angry and shaken and scared and confused and happy and disgusted, so sue me. You won't win._

He has no idea who he's speaking to. The universe? God? The demonic entity that tortures them with their miserable existence?

Well, it can wait. Right now, they need to talk to Talia. It's already taken them over 20 hours to track her down, they can't afford to waste any more time.

At a signal from Bruce, Tim uses a skeleton key to open the lock on the balcony door. Then, his brother removes a device from his pocket and attaches it to his wrist computer with a cable.

He starts typing on the attached keyboard at breakneck speed, and Dick tunes it out. There's no point asking, Tim just... does that. According to him (and Babs), it has something to do with mechanical keyboards and... cherry switches? He has no idea.

Finally, Tim signals to them that it's safe to enter, and Bruce takes the lead.

One by one, they enter the penthouse, into what appears to be a sitting room.

Dick had expected... well, he hadn't expected anything in particular, but it wasn't this. The place looked... _homely_.

He noticed the photos on the wall, featuring Jason and Talia along with other people he didn't recognise. He saw the couch, which was covered with an embroidered sheet that looked like nothing else he had ever seen. The kitchen looked like it saw regular use, with pots and pans drying near the sink and aprons hung up nearby.

A couple of books lay on the centre table, closed with bookmarks inside them.

Dick smiled, remembering how much Jason hated leaving books open when they were not being read.

Just then, a familiar voice startled him back to the present.

"Welcome."

Talia al Ghul walks into view.

Her clothes seem... unnaturally casual. He has never seen the Daughter of the Demon (or rather, the Sister of the Demon now) in a sweater and leggings, even when she was in a relationship with Bruce and almost a permanent resident of the Manor.

Dick gritted his teeth, and he noticed his companions were doing the same.

"I must confess that I am not entirely prepared to receive all of you. While I am sure we can talk, I have unfortunately not prepared any refreshments. I do hope you can forgive me."

Her tone is amused, and unrepentant.

Thankfully, Tim does the talking for them.

"We would be happy to talk, Talia. But I hope you do understand that we have a duty here."

"Oh? Do you now?" Her raised eyebrow communicates her derision even better than the tone of her voice.

"You killed a man in judicial custody, while he lay in a hospital bed. Three of them."

"That _thing_ was not a human. Let us not pretend that you actually want him alive."

Bruce looks done with the politeness. "Some of us have better restraint than you, Talia."

"We all know that you have no restraint either, Bruce." It's odd, not hearing the usual epithet of _Beloved_. It makes her sound much more... cold. Dick had hated the times when she had been attempting to seduce Bruce to the dark side at every meeting, but he is ready to have that back now. This is... scarier.

Bruce remains silent.

"I had believed you to be a good man once, Bruce. It saddens me to see what you truly are."

"Do not speak of being good, Talia. You are a murderer."

"And you are the man who chose to kill his child over the Joker, in an attempt to prove that he is above killing. Truly a victory for the forces of justice."

Bruce grits his teeth even harder, but says nothing.

Thankfully, Tim decides to continue the conversation.

"Look, Talia, you had no reason to go after the Joker. Jason was safe, you were safe, the Joker was out for the count. This was an unprovoked assault."

"Ignoring the small matter of him attacking my niece, the Joker is a psychotic criminal who will never change. Experts have already admitted that he cannot be treated, and you have ensured that he will not be tried in court. Someone needed to ensure that justice was done."

"I'm sorry, what the fuck does that mean?" Dick blurted out.

Talia smiled. "What I mean is this - since conventional systems of justice have been removed from the equation, this is all we have left. And as to why conventional justice is not an option... Bruce, would you mind explaining?"

They all turn to Bruce.

He does not reply.

Damian speaks up for the first time.

"Father. What is the meaning of this?"

Bruce does not reply.

Talia laughs quietly.

"Well, if you are done with your questions, please leave. My children are sleeping."

_Wait a second._

"Children?" Dick asks.

"Yes. Children. Surely you have seen them, there are quite a few photographs around here."

Dick looks around once again, at the place.

The rack near the kitchen has three aprons on it, not two. One of the books on the sitting table is for young children, going by the artwork on the cover. All the furniture in the room has padded edges and corners, and the family photos have three people in them, not two.

It's a girl, who at her oldest looks to be around... one? Two?

And going by the one photo with just her and Jason, it's clear who the father is.

Every single one of them knows when Bruce notices it.

"Talia. How dare you."

"With ease, Bruce. You have repeatedly proven that Batman comes before your children. Forgive me for not entrusting my child to you."

"She is my child. Mine."

"You did not know of her until a minute ago, and it hasn't affected you."

"I have the right to be in her life."

"Not when her life is not the most important thing in the world for you."

"How dare you question my commitment to protecting my children?"

"By observing how you have endangered, manipulated and used them to further your ends over theirs."

"You cannot claim that you are any different."

Talia's eyes blaze with anger, the green light becoming uncomfortably bright. "I have never put my own needs over my children. Not once. I let you take my child, I let you turn him against me, just because I wanted him to be safe."

"He turned against you because of your actions. Because he knew that our way was better."

Talia scoffs. "Don't be stupid, Bruce. You know as well as I do that he is with you because he was trained to look up to you, to seek your approval. Because you offered him the opportunity to pretend to be a hero, an illusion of power over a world that is otherwise out of control."

Talia looks at Dick, and he feels his skin crawl.

"Or rather, you did. At the cost of the other Robin."

Tim spoke up at that point. "Is that you trying to turn us against each other? Because it's a pathetic attempt."

Talia laughs. "No, it is an attempt to make you realize that you are wrong."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dick asks. " _We_ are trying to do the right thing here."

"You don't know that!" Talia yells.

They all freeze at that uncharacteristic outburst.

"You may hope and pray that your kindness and optimism is right, but you will never _know_ that."

Nobody responds.

"You have the gall to say that you have no right to kill as vigilantes but do have the right to detain people, interrogate them with as much brutality as you wish to use, enter homes without a warrant, brutalize criminals as per your mood, prosecute intergalactic wars, engage in treaties that extend across the universe and choose how people are tried and served by the law."

She smiles, and it's the cold smile they all know, but this time, Dick can sense the righteousness rolling off of her in waves.

"Admit it, it's not that you think killing is wrong, or that you don't have the right to do it. You all just cannot summon the spine to take responsibility for your actions."

"And what makes you think that you have the right to decide who lives and dies?" Tim asks.

Talia's response is surprisingly immediate. "My faith in my conscience."

"Your conscience, that led you to the second-highest post in a terrorist cult that kills people and tries to control world politics?"

"My conscience, that led me to found a company that tries to push sustainable development the world over, to give up my son to a man I barely trusted to keep him safe from the dangers that surrounded him, that encouraged me to take in a broken child and care for him till he recovered."

Her eyes bore into all of them as she proceeds.

"My conscience, that forced me to keep my daughter out of the hands of her selfish father, that pushed me to get rid of my egotistical father whose leadership had corrupted the organization that I worked for, that told me to make sure that the new leader was someone who was committed to our goals and knew the dangers of hubris."

"And what does Jason's conscience tell him to do?" Bruce asks.

A deep voice rings out from the darkness behind Talia.

"To be angry."

Jason comes into view, stepping up to stand beside his - his mother, Dick realizes for the first time.

Or maybe he has always known it, but he had never wanted to admit it to himself.

They aren't Jason's family anymore.

"It tells me to be angry for every murder victim whose murderer roams free."

Dick hears Bruce's teeth grinding, but nobody says a word.

"It tells me to be angry for every rape victim who does not get to see their rapist punished."

Dick flinches at that. He hopes that nobody noticed it.

"It tells me to be angry for every person who is unjustly accused of a crime they did not commit."

Bruce flinches at that one.

"It tells me to be angry for all children who are abused by their fathers."

They all take a step back at that.

"And it tells me to keep going until I have made sure that there is nobody I need to be angry at anymore."

A silence descends on them. Dick doesn't dare to break it.

Jason motions towards the window. "Please. Leave."

They hesitate, as they look to Bruce.

Jason grits his teeth as he repeats himself. "Leave."

Slowly, Bruce moves to the window.

Dick follows along with his brothers as one by one, they go out onto the balcony and grapple away.

They remain silent as they grapple back to the Cave.

\---------------------------------

After the Bats have left, Talia turns to Jason and sighs.

"I am sorry for waking you up."

Jason lets out a soft _tsk_ , shaking his head. "I heard them when they came in."

"How are you feeling?"

"Right now? Still soaking it in."

She places her hand on his shoulder, slowly massaging it and feeling the tension bleed out.

"I always thought... I would have to live with it."

She lets her child speak, as she continues to rub his shoulder.

"I don't feel... better. Safer, yes, but not better."

"That is regrettable, but not entirely unexpected, is it?"

"Yeah, but it's scary. What if I never get over it?"

Talia pulls his large, hunched frame into her side. "You will never 'get over it'. But you can learn to not let it ruin your life."

"I don't know how."

"Don't worry, Habibi. We have time."

Jason laughs. "Yeah, I suppose we do."

A noise comes from behind them, and they both turn around.

"Bah!"

Jason huffs out a laugh. "Okay, squirt, let's get you back to bed."

Talia follows her child as he goes forth to pick her up and put her back in her crib.

"You know, I have no clue how she gets out every single time. You might want to get a crib with higher walls."

"Why would I stop my daughter from going where she wants to?"

Jason shakes his head as he puts Athanasia back into bed, tucking her in and ensuring that the surrounding mattresses are in place. Her daughter is... prone to escaping her confinement quite regularly.

As Jason hums a tune to lull Athanasia back to sleep, Talia feels the surge of pride once again.

_No, pride is not the word I'm looking for. There's so much more inside me now._

\---------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks a lot to everyone who's been following this series! I'm probably going to be focusing on this and Black Lantern Jason for a while now. I have a plan for the next major event and hopefully, I can get there without derailing the entire thing.
> 
> As always, all criticism is appreciated, even if you just want to rant about this piece being wrong in all possible ways. I would still like to hear your take.

**Author's Note:**

> As always, any and all criticism is welcome, even if it is not constructive. Feel free to tell me why all my choices here are misguided and shit on characters you love, I'm interested in hearing those too. As always, thanks for taking the time to read this, it means the world to me.


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